


One Night, Maybe Forever

by Rehearsal_Dweller



Series: For Even a Day [3]
Category: Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: M/M, Royalty AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:15:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23753719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rehearsal_Dweller/pseuds/Rehearsal_Dweller
Summary: “We’ll figure something out for you, Davey-mine,” Jack whispers, and he’s not even sure that Davey will hear it. It’s little more than a breath into Davey’s hair. He isn’t really surprised that Davey responds, though. Davey always seems to hear him when he needs to.“Isn’t that the problem, though?” mumbles Davey. “I’m yours.”
Relationships: David Jacobs & Katherine Plumber Pulitzer, David Jacobs/Jack Kelly, Jack Kelly/Katherine Plumber
Series: For Even a Day [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1705639
Comments: 22
Kudos: 89





	One Night, Maybe Forever

**Author's Note:**

> Who's ready for an off-topic interlude before we jump into the Sprace wedding in the next instalment?  
> (Also, yes, I am going to write about the Sprace wedding. I'm in too deep now not to.)  
> This spun out of the b-plot from the previous part, so while Race and Spot are mentioned a few times and Race is actually present in the fic, it's a fic about Davey and Jack having a Davey crisis. It overlaps the previous fic, timing wise. It's a bit of a departure in tone from the other fics in this series, a little more quiet and slightly angsty but mostly just soft. No worries, though, the next one will be back to your regularly scheduled nonsense.

John “Jack” Francis Kelly Manhattan Larkin has it good.

He’s crown prince, learning at his mother’s side to one day become king. He has two younger brothers that he adores, even though they’re both a bit of a handful. He has a wife and dear friends who he loves.

All told, he’s pretty happy with his life.

Usually.

It’s late. The sky is dark, and Jack has put away his paints and brushes for the night, having lost his light on the balcony. He’s changed into nightclothes and crawled into bed next to Katherine. Neither of them is quite ready for sleep, yet, but they’ve been reading a book together and it’s nice to nestle in against the mountain of pillows and read until one of them dozes off.

They’re barely three pages in before Katherine cocks her head to one side, listening to something Jack hadn’t heard. “Is that someone at the door?”

Jack closes his eyes, trying to catch the sound. Sure enough, there’s a distant sound of knocking – someone’s at the door to their suite.

“I’ll go,” Jack says, slipping out of bed with a kiss to Katherine’s forehead. “Be right back.”

He doesn’t know who he’s expecting, but it definitely isn’t Davey. Davey doesn’t knock, he’s always welcome and he knows it.

And yet here Davey stands on the other side of the door, looking tired and angry and sad and broken and –

“Oh, Davey-mine, what happened?” Jack asks, pulling the taller man into a hug. “You were with Lizzie again today, right? I thought you were feeling good about her?”

“I lied,” Davey mumbles into Jack’s shoulder. “She’s a bitch, and I knew it.”

“You what?” Jack pushes Davey away from him just enough that he can look Davey in the eye. “Dave. You told me you were gettin’ along with her.”

Davey won’t meet his gaze. “You keep saying you want me to be happy with one of these people, so I was – I was trying to be happy.”

“Fucking hell, Dave, I want you to find someone who _makes you happy_ ,” says Jack, one of his hands coming up to cup Davey’s cheek. “I didn’t mean pick someone and be done with it.”

“Well Elizabeth ain’t it,” Davey says, his voice low and rough. “You should’a seen her, Jackie – I got her to admit she was trying to get close to you boys, and we were fighting about it and Race and Spot blew in cause they heard us, and she just starts fucking swooning over Racer! Like I wasn’t even –“ He breaks off with a frustrated huff. “I don’t –“

“I’m sorry, love,” Jack says. He tries to keep his tone quiet and soothing as he sweeps his thumb across Davey’s cheekbone. “C’mon in, Davey-mine, stay with us. We’ll worry about the rest in the morning.”

He leads Davey back toward the bedroom, one arm around his waist and the other gripping his hand tightly.

“Jack?” Katherine calls as she hears them approach. “Who was it?”

Jack steps into the room with Davey. Katherine takes in the two of them – wrapped around each other, Davey tired and shaky, Jack concerned – and slides over on the bed to make space for a third body. She sets their book on the bedside table.

“Lizzie fell through,” Jack says simply. The rest, the part where Davey has been fighting though date after date with suitor after suitor and been unhappy the whole time but putting on a brave face, will come tomorrow.

Katherine nods. “Davey?”

“Hmm?” Davey responds, barely audible.

“Come here, love,” says Katherine. She opens an arm for him and waits.

Davey doesn’t pull away from Jack, but he starts moving toward the bed without being prompted any further. Jack only lets him go so that they can crawl in easily, working his arm back under Davey’s torso once the taller man has settled under the blankets next to Katherine. It’s been a long time since they’ve done this, just curled up together and comforted.

Can it have been since Jack and Katherine’s wedding last year?

Davey has seen this bed plenty since then, but when’s the last time it was just to hold and be held and not –

His legs are caught up with Katherine’s under the covers, and his head is resting on Jack’s shoulder.

“You’re staying with us tonight, right, Davey?” Katherine asks, laying her own head on Davey’s chest.

Davey makes a small, noncommittal sound.

Jack presses a kiss to his temple. “Stay, love.”

Davey sighs, relaxing a little in their arms. “If you want me.”

“Always, Davey-mine,” says Jack. “Always.”

\--

Jack wakes up to a weight draped across him, which is both a fair explanation for how much warmer he feels than usual and completely baffling because Kath is not a cuddly sleeper. The weight squirms a little, and Jack starts to wake up a little more fully, and he’s able to identify the wiry body wrapped around his as Davey Jacobs.

Right, because Davey showed up at their door last night looking crushed and the only way Jack could think to handle it was to – to –

Fuck, if Jack has one regret in his life it’s David Jacobs, and the least he can do is help pull Davey together when he falls apart. He pulls Davey a little tighter, tipping his head toward Davey’s and nuzzling his nose into his hair.

“I can practically hear you thinking,” Katherine says quietly.

“He’s still sleeping,” Jack says instead of dignifying her with a response.

“We’re not going to wake him talking,” says Katherine. She slides a little closer to the boys, wrapping an arm around Davey’s waist. “He sleeps like the dead.”

Jack presses a kiss to Davey’s hair. “ _I_ know that.”

“What happened?” Katherine asks.

“Y’know how he kept sayin’ he thought that gal he was seein’ was alright?” says Jack. He waits for Katherine’s nod before continuing. “Apparently he lied. Fell to pieces yesterday, an’ he ain’t in good shape over it.” He sighs, rubbing Davey’s back idly. “I think he’s been in bad shape for a while, an’ he just don’t want me worryin’ over him.”

“A’course I don’t,” Davey mumbles into Jack’s chest. “You got more important stuff to –“ he yawns –“ than me.”

“Shit, love, did we wake you?” says Jack. He ignores Katherine’s little chuckle, focusing on his friend.

Davey shakes his head. “Been in and out all night. Can’t get my brain to shut up.”

“Could’a said something.”

“You were sleeping.”

“Da _vey_ ,” Jack says, a little bit of frustration pulling the word into a bit of a whine. “I’m sayin’ you should’a woken me.”

“I’m already inconveniencing you by being here, I’m not going to keep you up, too,” replies Davey.

A strangled sound escapes Jack despite his efforts to stop it, but before he can try to put words to it, Katherine sits up.

“I’m going to go have someone bring the three of us something to eat,” she says. She kisses David’s hair, then Jack’s lips. “I’ll be back soon. Do you want to eat here or the sitting room?”

“Sitting room,” Davey says. He tries to wiggle away from Jack, but he tightens the arm slung around Davey’s shoulders to hold him in place. Jack nods to Katherine over Davey’s head, though. The sitting room is fine, but that’s not a free pass for Davey to start pretending everything’s alright.

He waits until Katherine has slipped off of the bed and left the room to speak. “You ain’t _inconveniencing_ me, Davey. You could never. You came to me last night, right?” He nudges Davey’s head with his chin so that he’ll look up and meet Jack’s eyes. “Somewhere in that big brain’a yours, you knew there’s always room for you here. Don’cha go forgettin’ it just because the sun’s up.”

Davey pulls away again, sitting up, and this time Jack lets him. “Jackie –“

“Fuck, love, you still look like shit,” Jack says once he gets a good luck at Davey’s face. If Jack didn’t _know_ he’d slept – a fact he can only be sure of because he felt the slow rise and fall of Davey’s chest against his own before he drifted off last night – he wouldn’t have believed it. “You an’ me are takin’ the day off today.”

“You can’t just –“

“Who the hell’s gonna stop me?” Jack says with a laugh. “I’m the goddamn prince, if I want a day to myself I will fucking have one.” He pokes Davey’s chest. “You’s the only one who can tell me no, an’ I’m still technically your boss.”

“We have responsibilities, Jack,” says Davey, looking away. “Deadlines –“

“I know for a fact you ain’t got a deadline for at least a week,” Jack interrupts. “And my first responsibility is always to my family. Mama taught me that.” He nods firmly. “Yeah, we’re takin’ the day.”

He crawls off of the bed, then holds a hand out expectantly to Davey.

Davey sighs deeply, then follows. He lets Jack gather him up in his arms again and walk him out to Jack and Katherine’s sitting room, where they curl up together on a couch and wait for Kath to get back. They don’t talk – not about how run down Davey looks and not about the way Jack won’t let him out of arm’s reach.

Instead they sit quietly, and they wait.

\--

Later, after Katherine comes back and the three of them have a lazy breakfast of pastries and tea and avoidance, Jack nudges Davey. “Alright, Davey, spill. This girl?”

“Same as always,” Davey says dully. “Could tell she wanted _something_ off the bat, and I’m always wary with those types. ‘Cause it’s one thing if they just want money or status or whatever, that’s the point of a political marriage, but I always worry they’re after one’a _you_.” He picks at the edge of the couch cushion. “You know that.”

Jack nods. “You usually don’t give’em the time’a day, when they’re like that. You see’em once and then you’re in here makin’ jokes. What changed?”

“New rules from Mom and Dad,” says Davey. He won’t look Jack in the eye. “They’re starting to worry about how old we are, I think.” He lets out a humorless laugh. “We ain’t allowed to turn people down right outta the gate anymore. But we, uh, decided not to tell you about it.”

Katherine, who’s sitting on Davey’s other side with her legs tucked up underneath her, shakes her head. “ _Why?”_

Davey turns toward her – great, so he’ll look at _Kath_ – and says, “We didn’t want you thinking we were being forced into something –“

“You were!”

“- and they’re not wrong!” Davey plows on, as if he hadn’t been interrupted simultaneously from both sides. “We’re almost twenty-four, now, and the older we get the fewer options we’ll have and – and –“ He almost seems to deflate, flopping back against the couch cushions. “And you’re always saying you want one of these things to work out for me, Jackie, so I was trying to make it work.”

“That is _not_ what I meant,” says Jack. He grabs Davey’s shoulder and makes him turn to face him. “Davey. I wanted something to work out for you because I love you and I want you to be happy. If you ain’t happy –“

“Jack,” Davey cuts in. His voice is shaky again. “It doesn’t matter if I’m happy.”

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” says Jack. He thinks he sounds remarkably calm, given the circumstances.

“You’re the one who’s always reminding Racer and Crutch about _responsibility_ and _duty_ and shit,” Davey says, shaking his head. “Well you three aren’t the only ones with responsibilities.” He sighs. “There’s the family line to consider, if nothing else.”

Katherine brushes her fingers across Davey’s arm. “Forget about duty for a moment, Dave. What do you _want_? If nothing else mattered, I mean. Do you want to find somebody and marry and things? Or would you rather just forget the whole thing and just go through your life as it is? Or something else entirely?”

“All getting caught up with people has ever gotten me is a broken heart,” Davey says, and he sounds so tired that it just about breaks Jack. “No matter how much I tell myself I know better than to work myself up, I just – I always _want_ these things to work out, you know? But not at the risk of one of the Manhattans or the kingdom.” He lets Jack pull him close again, fitting perfectly under his arm like he always has. Davey lets out a defeated sigh. “Maybe I _should_ just give all this up. Stay in the castle and occasionally fuck my best friend or his wife and die alone.”

Katherine, bless her, laughs at this, which is great because Jack can’t. He just has Davey’s words echoing through his skull.

_All getting caught up with people has ever gotten me is a broken heart_. There’s no way that doesn’t include Jack. He holds Davey just a little tighter.

They sit in silence for a long time after that, only broken by a knock at the door.

“I’ve got it,” Katherine says, her voice low. She squeezes Davey’s shoulder as she gets up.

“Davey –“ Jack starts, but he falters. He settles instead for pressing a kiss to the top of Davey’s head and hoping some of the guilt that’s soaking through his entire being comes through as apology.

Katherine returns, Race and Albert on her heels. Jack feels like he should care a little more that Race is here, since they haven’t been allowed to see each other in weeks, but he’s too distracted by Davey to really give it much thought. Kath settles back in next to Jack and Davey, and Race sits down in a chair across the way with Albert hovering behind him. Jack tracks the movement as the boys get settled, but Davey doesn’t even really seem to notice them.

Jack nudges Davey gently. “Hey, Dave. Race is here.”

“Hi, Race,” Davey says, and it’s _empty_. “We’ve decided I’m giving up on romance.”

“Does it count as romance if you’re forced into it by your parents?” Race says. His tone is light, but Jack can hear the genuine sympathy underneath the words.

“Worked out for _you_ ,” Davey says, and his tone is sharp but still a little hollow. He shifts his weight a little more heavily against Jack’s side and reaches blindly for Katherine’s hand. “And for these two.”

“We’ll figure something out for you, Davey-mine,” Jack whispers, and he’s not even sure that Davey will hear it. It’s little more than a breath into Davey’s hair. He isn’t really surprised that Davey responds, though. Davey always seems to hear him when he needs to.

“Isn’t that the problem, though?” mumbles Davey. “I’m _yours_.”

That’s just one more aching crack in Jack’s heart, isn’t it? This thing between them hasn’t ever really been something they discussed – Jack and Kath were a known outcome long before Jack started fooling around with Davey or Sarah. Jack is vaguely aware that Katherine has started rubbing little circles into Davey’s back but that’s as much because he feels Davey relax as anything else.

He’s almost sure other things are happening now, but Jack only has eyes – and ears and arms and heart – for Davey Jacobs. He lets himself drift away from the rest of the world, fully focused on Davey. The way Davey fits so perfectly against Jack like puzzle pieces made to slot together, the familiar smell of Davey’s hair, the feel of his stubble against Jack’s skin where his face is pressed into Jack’s neck.

Jack takes a lot of comfort just from being close to Davey; he hopes Davey feels the same, because it feels like the only comfort he can really offer.

They sit like that for a long time, not talking. Jack thinks that at some point Race and Albert leave, although he wouldn’t be able to say when exactly. He barely notices anything but Davey until Katherine clears her throat.

“I have some work to do today,” she says, her voice quiet. “You boys gonna be okay if I leave you alone?”

“I should go, too,“ Davey says. He sits up, avoiding Jack’s eye again.

Katherine rolls her eyes and puts a firm hand on Davey’s shoulder, stilling him. “I happen to know you and Jack took the day off. You boys have some fun, okay? I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“Katie –“

“Dave,” Katherine interrupts. “Embrace it. You’ve been under a lot of pressure lately, not just because of this relationship thing. Let him paint you again, you know he’s been dying to.”

Davey turns to look at Jack, who nods. “C’mon, Davey-mine, when’s the last time we just spent a day together?”

“Alright,” says Davey. “But no more – I don’t want to talk about –“

“Okay,” Jack replies, putting his hands up. “We don’t have to. I just want to get your mind off things.”

“Okay.”

Katherine nods. “Good. No offense, Davey, but you look like you need it.” She gives them each a kiss and leaves.

“There is no way you actually want to paint me again,” Davey says to Jack once she’s gone. “But I’ll happily sit with you while you work on one’a your landscapes if you want.”

“You kiddin’ me, Jacobs? I ain’t painted you in like six _months_!”

“Ja- _ack_ ,” Davey replies, laughing.

“I am not joking, love of mine,” says Jack, “you know you’re my favorite subject.”

“Yeah, I know,” says Davey. He rolls his eyes. “But I never get to watch you when you’re painting me.”

That makes Jack smile; Davey’s always loved watching Jack paint. “How about a compromise – you let me paint you for a while, an’ then we can work on the landscape I’ve got going.”

Davey sighs theatrically. “Alright.”

\--

Hours later, Jack and Davey sit together on the balcony. Jack is working on the painting he’d started yesterday afternoon, while Davey sits curled on an armchair he’d dragged out from inside just a few feet behind him.

“Hey, Davey?” Jack says, glancing over his shoulder.

“Yeah, Jackie?” replies Davey. He looks much more relaxed than he did this morning, watching contentedly as Jack paints, with one leg dangling over the chair arm and the other pulled up to his chest.

“You really gonna swear off all that romance stuff?” Jack asks, a little hesitantly.

Davey tenses, his dangling foot freezing mid-swing. “Oh, I don’t know. It’s not that bad, really. And I don’t know if Mom and Dad would take no for an answer.”

“There’s always Les,” says Jack. “How’s Sarah handling the pressure?”

“Better than me,” Davey admits. “She’s – well, she doesn’t like the situation any more than I do, but Sarah’s always been stronger than me. It’s getting to her, I know it is, but I doubt it’ll break her.” He looks down at his hands, tucked into his lap.

Jack turns fully, dropping to his knees next to Davey’s chair. “Has it broken _you_?”

“No,” says Davey. “I – no.”

“Davey.”

“Jack.”

Jack takes one of Davey’s hands in his own. “Give it up, Davey.”

“It’s not that simple, love,” Davey says, finally looking at Jack.

“Ain’t it?” says Jack. “Hell, Davey-mine, do your parents even know how hard this is on you?”

“Does it matter, Jackie?” Davey snaps. “Really. Beyond all the romantic crap you love to spew about – about it mattering to _you_ , when you and I both know – when you and I know _that_ doesn’t matter either.”

“Ain’t just me that wants you happy, Dave,” Jack says flatly. “Mayer and Esther care about your wellbeing, not just your marriage options. If you actually _told them_ you don’t want that, they’d listen.”

“What if I do?” says Davey. “What if I want it?” He pulls his outstretched leg in, twisting so his body faces Jack. “What if I’m tired of stolen moments with you and I want something real of my own?”

“Davey –“

“And I know you and Kitty aren’t ‘real,’ before you try to fight me,” Davey barrels on, his eyes starting to shimmer with tears. “But it’s more real than anything you and I were ever gonna have.”

“Davey,” Jack repeats. He slips his arms around Davey’s waist and he collapses into the hug like his strings have been cut. “Davey, c’mon, love. It ain’t like that.”

“It’s exactly like that, Jack,” says Davey. “It always has been. Doesn’t matter what we feel or want or anything, because there’s bigger worries out there for us.”

Jack sighs, dropping his head onto Davey’s shoulder. He’s right, of course. Davey’s always right about the important stuff. “Don’t mean we don’t feel what we feel.”

“No,” says Davey. “No, it doesn’t.”

“You gotta be honest from here on out,” Jack says, lifting his head again to look at Davey’s face. “With me, with your parents. Sarah, too. F’you ain’t happy, it ain’t worth the effort. And I can’t watch you fall apart at the seams, Davey-mine, I can’t.”

“Yeah, okay,” Davey replies. He takes a deep breath, then moves back, out of Jack’s arms. “Finish your painting?”

Jack eyes him suspiciously for a moment, then nods.

\--

The Winter Gala is upon them in no time, sweeping in with sparkling decorations and a light dusting of actual snow.

It’s been a few weeks since Davey’s minor breakdown, and he seems more or less back to normal, though Jack is wary. Davey Jacobs is nothing if not a master at pretending he’s okay.

“Lookin’ good, Dave,” he says, eyes skimming Davey’s perfectly fitted outfit and carefully arranged hair.

Davey rolls his eyes. “Flirt.”

“Only with you, darlin’,” Jack replies, winking. Somewhere behind him, his wife laughs.

Sarah, next to Davey and just as gorgeous, says, “What about me?”

“Right, of course,” says Jack. He takes her hand and dramatically kisses her knuckles. “You look beautiful, Lady Sarah.”

“Thank you,” Sarah replies, grinning. “Kitty, he tell _you_ you look amazing yet?”

“Not yet,” says Katherine, her tone teasing. “But we all know he only has eyes for Davey.”

“Maybe I’m just prettier than you two,” Davey says. Jack and the girls laugh, and Davey has this satisfied little smirk on that just makes Jack’s heart sing.

The four of them walk down to the ballroom together, the twins walking together and Jack with Katherine.

Late in the evening, Jack stands off to the side of the dance floor catching his breath. Katherine is dancing with Sarah, obviously having fun, but Jack’s eyes are on his brothers. Charlie is with Niamh Conlon, cheering on Les and Maebh as they stumble awkwardly around the floor. Race has his arms around his fiancé, clearly deep in conversation with Spot with a soft smile on his face.

“They look happy,” Davey says, startling Jack. He hadn’t seen Davey approach.

“They got lucky,” Jack says once his heart rate goes back to normal. “They fell in love.”

“You love Kitty,” says Davey, but they both know it’s not the same.

Still, Jack says, “Yeah.”

They fall quiet, just enjoying the moment. Jack hums along with the music.

“I told my parents,” Davey says eventually. “They said they didn’t realize how much stress it was all causing me and – and I don’t have to get married if it really isn’t what I want. I can focus on my job and my family.”

“Good,” says Jack. He brushes his hand against Davey’s, and Davey catches it and tangles their fingers together. “I wish –“

“Don’t,” Davey interrupts. “We always knew what was going to happen, Jackie-mine. Wishing for something different just hurts.”

Jack sighs, leaning on Davey a little and letting his head drop on the taller man’s shoulder. “I know. Doesn’t mean I don’t, though.”

“Yeah,” says Davey, his head tipping so his cheek rests on the top of Jack’s head. “I’m glad it worked out for Race. Hopefully Les and Charlie get lucky, too.”

“I don’t think we’re _un_ lucky,” Jack says, picking up on the wistful tone in his friend’s voice.

Davey lets out a single, defeated laugh.

“I’m serious, Dave,” says Jack. “We may not have some fairytale romance, but we’ve got each other. And we’ve got your sister and Kath. Our own funny little family, and maybe it’s not exactly what we would’ve chosen or wanted but – but I’m living in a world where with everything else against me, I still get to keep _you_. If that’s not lucky, I don’t know what is.”

Davey doesn’t respond right away, and Jack can tell he’s still watching Race and Spot on the dance floor. But eventually, finally, he turns his head just enough to press a kiss to Jack’s forehead. “Maybe you’re right.”

_Yeah,_ Jack thinks, settling into the feel of being close to Davey while the world turns on around them, _my life’s pretty good._


End file.
